Cauda Equiner recovery

[Headley]

Hey heads! Long time no see.

9 months ago, a 28mm disc bulge reached breaking point and burst onto my spinal chord, paralyzing me from the waist down. Not a fun time TBH.

Long story short the paralysis was temporary and the surgeon thinks that i should regain all motor function and sensation.

Nine months later i have about 85-90% strength back in my right glute, ham and calf but i still walk with a limp (it gets worse the more fatigued i am) and still have no sensation on areas of my body but that is slowly shrinking. So yay for me i guess.

For about 5 weeks and until recently, i had a job as a courier driver, this helped tremendously with regaining more strength in my right leg but wasn't the best for my back (which has been signed off by the surgeon as being great again).

So back to the gym i need to go.

This Saturday i have a session at my local gym to go over what exercises would be good, and what to avoid. I have been warned by my surgeon and rehab physio to go easy with squats, dead lifts and any barbell work. I had a plan to start with cardio and then some basic isolation machines.

My goals are:
- Regain strength lost in my right side
- Fat loss
- Muscle toning
- Weight loss (130 KGs to 125, then 120, all the way to 110)

 

[Headley]

Second gym session done.

Jumped on a lot of isolation machines and went quite well.

Jumped on my biggest challenge; calf raise machine. Since my back operation i have lost a lot of strength in my right leg, my right calf in particular, due to nerve damage.

Really struggled on the calf machine but managed to actually lift it with just my right leg a few times. Flap it was hard. Telling those muscles to fire and they just don't, it's different than lifting a heavy weight it feels more like trying to push a coin with your 6th (imaginary) finger.

On the upside though i did feel muscle fatigue in the calf after it.

Im not going to push it super hard but i will be pushing it every time i go.

 

[Headley]

Second PT session is done, more intense than last time. Mild DOMS, but nothing serious. 1 x 20 seconds of pain, felt like a sharp stick poking me. No further occurrences.

Exercises done:

Cable row
Dumbbell OHP
Dumbbell lateral raise
Dumbbell curls
Stomach crunches
Stomach bicycles
A few others.

 

[Headley]

Saturday morning i went for a spin class at the local gym.

Big mistake.

Even though the class was good and wasn't too hard, i somehow suffered a serious injury to my balls, causing them to swell and bruise pretty heavily. Upon discovery i nearly panicked and went to the hospital but decided against it for now. If it gets any worse then i will.

So no more spin classes while my backside is still numb

 

[Headley]

Well the injury is getting better thankfully, no permanent damage which is a massive relief. Next PT session is Thursday morning, i should be OK with it.

 

[Headley]

Fucking crushed a finger the other day, it's ouch. Aim to get back into the gym later this week though.

 

[lamarclark09]

Appreciating your efforts. You should start slowly. In my opinion you should start from jogging, yoga, cycling, and aerobic exercises first. After passing some time when your body gets in shape you should try gym workouts like squats, lunges, Triceps dips, leg lifts and kicks, abdominal crunches in order to tone up and strengthen your body.
These exercises help in achieving your goals. Hope you will recover soon and enjoy your health.